1.  g:aðb:r kað UK: g:að_n:ð B:ðj: dðn:a .
   'Send Gobar to hoe the cane.'

   (from Chapter One of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
      The great majority of Hindi-Urdu compound verbs are made with one of the three vectors  j:a,  dð, and  l:ð, which are homonymous with the main verbs for 'go', 'give', and 'take'. By using one of these three vectors speakers may specify the completeness and (where relevant) the physical orientation of the action expressed by the polar verb. Other, less common vectors, in addition to completeness and orientation, may be used to express the attitude of the speaker to the action denoted by the polar. Among these is  b:òY which is homonymous with the verb meaning 'sit' or 'sit down'. As a vector  b:òY implies misguided action. In example (2) the modifying clause  j:að n: krn:a c:aehO  makes this explicit:

2.  haú,  J:Øen:y:a p:r us:ð kB:i- kB:i Av:Sy: #aðD: Aat:a,  Vy:aðøek v:h Awan: kñ karN: j:að n: krn:a c:aehO,  v:h kr b:òYt:i.
   'Yes, she would occasionally get angry with Juniya, because out of ignorance she would go and do things which she shouldn't.'

   (from Chapter Thirty-three of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
Depending on tense and mood, the implication of misguided action may engender a connotation either of fear (3), of regret (4), or of derision (5):

3.  hira kñ es:r hty:a s:v:ar hò,  n: j:an:ð Vy:a kr b:òYð .
   'Hira's got murder on his mind. There's no telling what he might do!'

   (from Chapter Nine of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
4.  l:aK:aðø km:ay:ð,  m:g:r S:am:t: Aay:i ek Ok m:ðm: s:ð AaS:n:aI kr b:òYð.  m:Øqdm:ðb:az:i hØI.  j:ðl: j:at:ð- j:at:ð b:c:ð.
   'He made millions, but had the misfortune of falling in love with an Englishwoman. The matter wound up in court. He almost went to jail.'

   (from Chapter Six of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
5.  m:al:t:i n:ð un:ki l:g:am: K:iøc:i --  AcCa,  Aap:kað B:i efl:as:fi m:ðø dQ:l: hò. m:òø t:að s:m:J:t:i T:i,  Aap: b:hØt: p:hl:ð Ap:n:i efl:as:fi kað g:øg:a m:ðø RÙb:að b:òYð. n:hiø,  Aap: Et:n:ð b:òøkaðø Aaòr kùp:en:y:aðø kñ RaErðVXr n: haðt:ð.
   'Mâlati decided to pull his chain. "Oh, so you, too, are an expert in philosophy. I thought you must have thrown your philosophy into the Ganges a long time ago. Otherwise, how could you be the director of so many banks and companies!"'

   (from Chapter Six of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
These connotations render vector  b:òY particularly apt to appear in  khiø-clauses expressing fear or anxiety:

6.  hrdm: T:r- T:r kaúp:t:i rht:i hò ek khiø D:en:y:a kÙC kh n: b:òYð .
   'She kept trembling with fear. What if Dhaniya were to say something (that she shouldn't)?'

   (from Chapter Eleven of   g:aðdan:. See context.)

7.  us:ð ec:nt:a T:i g:aðb:r ki.  l:_ka l:jj:aS:il: hò,  An:a_i hò,  Aatm:aeB:m:an:i hò,  khiø kaðI n:adan:i n: kr b:òYð.
   'He was worried about Gobar. The boy was introverted, he was naïve, he was egoistic. What if he were to do something foolish?'

   (from Chapter Ten of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
 See related notes on  khiø  and the expression of fear.
It is worth noting that compound verbs in  b:òY  that have the implication of misguided action almost always have [+human] subjects.  An apparent counterexample:

8.  ec:e_y:a ka Ap:raD:-B:av: Ab: Aa#m:N: ka Aakar l:ð b:òYa&&&
   'Chiriya's feeling of guilt took an aggressive form...'

   (from   ec:e_y:a Aaòr c:il:  by  s:Ø\:m: b:ðdi.  See context.)
      Compound verbs in  b:òY  are generally made from transitive (rather than intransitive) polar verbs. However, because vector  b:òY  itself comes from an intransitive verb, compound verbs made from it do not allow  n:ð  with their subjects. See examples (4) and (5).
      Not every compound verb in  b:òY  has the implication of misguided action. There is a set of polar verbs whose compounds in  b:òY  suggest irresistibility (9) or undesirability (10):

9.  S:rab: ka n:S:a un:kñ Up:r es:ùh ki B:aúet: J:p:Xa Aaòr db:aðc: b:òYa.  v:h kht:ð kÙC hòø,  m:Øúh s:ð en:kl:t:a kÙC hò.
   'The intoxication of drink pounced on him like a lion. He would say one thing and out of his mouth would come another thing.'

   (from Chapter Six of   g:aðdan:. See context.)

10.  Es:i t:rh t:Øm: l:aðg:aðø n:ð eks:an:aðø kað l:ÜX- l:ÜXkr m:j:Ür b:n:a Ral:a Aaòr Aap: un:ki z:m:in: kñ m:ael:k b:n: b:òYð.
   'This is how you people robbed the small-holders, turned them into landless laborers, and became yourselves the owners of their land.'

   (from Chapter Twenty-one of   g:aðdan:. See context.)
The sequence  b:n: b:òY  in (10) is a commonly occurring fixed idiom meaning something like 'usurp'.
      When used with intransitive polar verbs like  c:` 'climb' and  uY 'get up', vector  b:òY  retains much more of its literal meaning 'sit':

11.  haðri un:ki Cat:i p:r c:` b:òYa Aaòr z:aðr s:ð da`i p:k_kr K:iøc:i.
   'Hori sat on his chest and grasping his beard pulled on it with all his strength.'

   (from Chapter Six of   g:aðdan:. See context.)

12.  s:hs:a g:aðb:r c:aòøkkr uY b:òYa Aaòr AaúK:ðø m:l:t:a hØAa b:aðl:a --  Arð !  y:h t:að B:aðr hað g:y:a.
   'Gobar suddenly started and sat up. Rubbing his eyes he said, "Hey! It's already morning!"'

   (from Chapter Four of   g:aðdan:. See context.)

This last may actually be not a compound verb at all but a sequence of two full verbs, the first denoting a prior action, the second a later one. Compare the  uY b:òYa  in (12) with the  uYkr b:òY g:y:ð  in (13), both meaning 'sat up (in bed)':

13.  m:ðht:a kað Oðs:a j:an: p:_a,  un: kaðm:l: haT:aðø n:ð j:òs:ð s:ara ddü K:iøc: el:y:a. uYkr b:òY g:y:ð Aaòr b:aðl:ð -- ddü t:að daðp:hr s:ð hi hað rha T:a Aaòr Oðs:a es:r- ddü m:ØJ:ð Aaj: t:k n:hiø hØAa T:a,  m:g:r t:Ømharð haT: rK:t:ð hi es:r Oðs:a hlka hað g:y:a hò m:an:aðø ddü T:a hi n:hiø.
   'To Mehta it seemed as if those delicate hands drew out all the pain. He sat up and said, "I have been in pain since the afternoon and I have never in my life had a headache like this one. But as soon as your hands touched me my head felt light again, as if there hadn't been any pain at all."'

   (from Chapter Thirty-three of   g:aðdan:. See context.)

To exercise (in progress)

To related notes on  khiø  and the expression of fear.
Other sections dealing with compound verbs:

          General functions.

          Marked compound verbs ( khð dðt:a hÜú ! )
          Vector  Ral: .
          Vector  p:_ .
          Compound-compound verbs ( y:h g:m:i ý t:að m:arkð rK: dðt:i hò. )

Additional readings: 1. Paul Hacker (in German). 2.

To index of grammatical notes.

To index of  m:lhar.

Drafted 17-18 Mar 2001. Posted 18-19 Mar 2001. Augmented 17 Feb 2003 & 7 Jul 2004.